Posts from — June 2010

My 9-year-old niece, with the help of my brother’s girlfriend (who has bravely shown up to mingle with 20 or so relatives for a full week!) has been making necklaces from the seashells and sea glass that she’s found on the beach.

They look surprisingly great.  I’m a little bummed, actually, because I missed getting a photo of  my absolute favorite so far, a chunky seashell on a tan string, which my super-stylish sister wore as she jetted away from vacation to make it to a business trip in Europe.  It looked like she’d bought it at a boutique.  Here are two others:

They suffer a bit from my poor photography.  They were lucky enough to find a bead store locally, but if you’ve got a beach vacation coming up, you might want to pack supplies.  Because it’s a cheap-but-lovely-and-meaningful souvenir gift.  The wrap-around thing works great, or  if you’ve done any seashell searching in your day, you’ve probably noticed that they often have holes in just the right spot, anyway (because some other sea animal tried to eat what was inside by boring the hole).  All of the aunts are supposed to get one, so I’m breathlessly awaiting mine.

We’re in a big ol’ beach house nestled between a bunch of other big ol’ beach houses.  This is the second time that we’ve stayed at this house, and last time, our next-door neighbors were a bunch of fraternity-sorority types.  When we arrived we feared the worst, but they were surprisingly quiet and conscientious.

This year, the neighboring house is occupied by a friendly and cheerful group.  Yesterday, we began to suspect that we were witnessing a destination wedding.  The whole group assembled purposefully last night in what we suspected was a rehearsal.  This morning, the women appeared sporting surprisingly complicated hairdos for a day at the beach.  We were excited.  We love a good wedding.

This afternoon, I was lounging on the beach and just cracking open the third novel of the vacation when the beach patrol motored up to tell us to that they were clearing the beach because a storm was rolling in.  After dragging our own towels and books and cameras inside, we looked at each other and wondered, “What about the wedding?”

At first, it appeared that it was going to proceed.  We spotted bridesmaids on the decorated boardwalk.

But as time progressed, it was looking pretty ugly.  Clouds were rolling in from the north:

Come to think of it, clouds were looking pretty ominous to the south:

At one point, we yelled over from our deck–was the wedding on?  Shrugs all around.  Up and down the beach, people gathered on their decks and watched the sky.

And then it got worse.  A lot of lightning.  In fact, there was so much lightning that I managed to “catch” some:

And then the rain.  More rain.  Time had passed and it was going to be pretty dark soon.  We were getting organized for dinner.  One of our little cousins said she’d seen the bride getting into a car.  We speculated about what the venue could  be.  We pouted a bit.  And then, just as the first grill full of burgers went on, someone noticed:  the wedding was on!

We shamelessly watched from the lower deck, and–that’s right!–even took pictures.  We weren’t alone:  decks were filled with cheerfully nosy and under-dressed spectators.  The bridesmaids’ dresses were pretty, and the bride looked so happy.  At the end there was applause up and down the beach.

Then we all went in for dinner.

We’re having such a lovely time that I might skip out on posting tomorrow.  No matter what I’ll have the weekend post for you, though.  Wait, what day is it?  I’m losing track.

Here’s the gorgeous red moon we saw from our deck last night:

One of the kids’ favorite activities is searching for crabs.  Here’s one that M found:

Hope everybody’s having a great week!

Hey!  We’re all exhausted from excessive cousin fun and sporting crispy noses in spite of 4 or 5 (or more) sunscreen applications today.  The week for us:  more of the same.  The week for you?  Actually, there’s quite a bit happening:

Monday, June 28th

• From 10 am to 4:30 pm, it’s a Kickoff for Summer Party at the Children’s Museum at Saratoga.
• From 10 am to 11 am, Sylvan Learning Centers in Clifton Park is hosting a free Kids Can Cook Seminar.  Register online.
• At 1 pm, Andy the Music Man will be performing at the Ballston Spa Town Hall.
• At 2 pm at the Glenville or Mont Pleasant Branch Libraries, kids in grades 1-5 are invited drop in to the summer kick-off program Make a Splash.
• At 6 pm, the Glens Falls High School Band will be performing at the Crandall Park Band Shell.
• At 7 pm, the Colonie Town Band is playing outside at Beltrone Living Center, 6 Winners Circle, Albany.

Tuesday, June 29th

• 10 am free movies!  At Bowtie this week it’s Alvin & the Chipmunks:  The Squeaquel, for Regal Cinemas today it’s Charlotte’s Web at Crossgates and Madagascar 2 at Clifton Park.
• At 10:30 am, Andy the Music Man will be performing at the main  Schenectady Public Library.  It’s a drop-in program.
• There are a ton of afternoon kick-off celebrations of various branches of the Schenectady Library for elementary school kids, including events at Niskayuna, Duane, Rotterdam, & Hamilton Hill.
• At 2 pm, they’re kicking off the Teen Summer Reading Club for grades 6-11 at the Duane Branch Library.  Today’s theme is Zombie Fest.
• There’s a Family Story Time at 6:30 pm at the Niskayuna Branch Library.  It’s a drop-in, and pajamas are welcome.
• At 7 pm at the Guilderland Public Library, they’re kicking off summer reading with an Uncle Brother concert.  Tickets required.
• At 7:30 pm, go on a Firefly Watch at Five Rivers.

Wednesday, June 30th

• At 10 am, kids in grades 1-5 are invited drop in to the summer kick-off program Make a Splash at the Quaker Street Branch.
• 10 am free movies!  At Bowtie this week it’s Alvin & the Chipmunks:  The Squeaquel, for Regal Cinemas today it’s Spirit:  Stallion of the Cimarron at Crossgates and Planet 51 at Clifton Park.
• At 11 am, the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Library is hosting Bubble Trouble, a program for kids who’ll be entering kindergarten in the fall.  No registration is required.
• From 1-5 pm, there are games for teens at the Guilderland Public Library.
• At 2 pm, they’re kicking off the Teen Summer Reading Club for grades 6-11 at the Quaker Street Branch.  Today’s theme is Game Day.
• It’s gospel music for Rockin’ on the River in Troy at 5 pm.
• At 7 pm, there will be a Drum & Bugle Corps competition at East Field in Glens Falls.

Thursday, July 1st

• There’s an all-day Red Cross Babysitting Course that starts at 9:30 am at Schenectady Central Library.  Ages 11 and up, and you must pre-register.
• 10 am free movie!  I meant to double check this–it appears that the Crossgates Regal Cinemas has an additional movie today, but I’m not calling them from vacation–if someone does and wants to fill us all in via comments, that would be a nice favor.
• From 10 am to noon, kids 2 to 10 can learn about Bountiful Bugs at Dyken Pond.  $3/child or $6/family.
• At 10:15 am, they’re showing Preschool Movies at the Clifton Park-Halfmoon Library.
• From 2-3 pm it’s Artrageous at the Children’s Museum at Saratoga.  For kids in grades K-4.
• At 2 pm, elementary-school kids can study Pond Organisms at the Duane Branch Library.
• At 3 pm, drop in for crafts for all ages at the Hamilton Hill Branch Library.
• The Gin Blossoms are playing for Alive at Five in Albany.
• The Sand Lake Kiwanis Summerfest kicks off tonight with amusement park rides opening in the evening (this was on their tentative schedule; you might want to double check).
• The Ballston Spa Community Band is playing at 6 pm at Wiswall Park as part of their Summer Concerts in the Park series.
• It’s Lego Night at 7 pm at the Mohawk Commons Barnes & Noble.

Friday, July 2nd

• Local residents will be admitted free to the Albany Institute of History & Art on Fridays all through July and August.
• There’s Stretching with Stuffee at 10 am at the Children’s Museum at Saratoga.
• At 10:30 am, there are Wiggly Water Wonders at the Scotia Public Library–suitable for families.
• At 10:30 am, the Mac-Haydn Theatre will be showing Cinderella.  This is a bit of a drive, but we’ve gone several times.  There’s a school with playground nearby, so we usually bring a picnic lunch for afterwards.
• The Sand Lake Kiwanis Summerfest continues with amusement park rides opening at 11 am and continuing into the evening.
• At noon there’s a concert in front of the Albany Public Library as part of the Acoustic Sidewalk Concert Series.
• At noon, take a hike at Albany Pine Bush and look for Blue Karner butterflies.
• It’s First Friday in Albany from 5-9 pm.
• It’s First Friday in Ballston Spa from 6-9 pm.

Did you know that today’s the day for the Great American Backyard Campout?

The girls love to camp. Each June, we come up with a checklist of what we absolutely must do to ensure a fabulous summer, and camping is always number one on the list. 

This, despite our lack of camping luck.  The first time that we attempted camping as parents, it was with just-over-one-year-old M at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival.  First, it happened to be freakishly hot.  Also, M abruptly weaned herself, so after walking around with an ice pack stuffed into my shirt (just another example of motherhood robbing me of every last bit of dignity), we had to Abort the Mission so that I could go home and pump.  For our second “real” camping trip, it started pouring down rain after we finished dinner, and it was coming down so hard that I couldn’t even finish toasting marshmallows so that the girls could have s’mores.   They melted in the rain before they had a chance to toast.  It continued through the night and the next day.  W and I were ready to give up and go to a diner for breakfast, but the girls had such a terrific time that we ate in our small, sweaty tent.

Backyard camping, on the other hand, has been an unqualified success.  If you’re a camper, you know that one of the biggest challenges is to pack the car with all of your stuff.  In the backyard, you can skip this gruesome step–yay!  And if you’re absolutely not a camper, you can borrow somebody’s tent, runinto the house (or even the store) if there’s something that you forgot, and the parents can even take shifts between staying out with the kids and getting actual, restful sleep.  Really, if you haven’t camped with kids, you should try it.  And do it with friends.  You know that makes everything more fun.  Last summer a bunch of friends camped together in a backyard, and after doing all of the requisite camping activities (cooking hot dogs and marshmallows over the fire, chasing fireflies, running around like maniacs), we settled the kids down with an outdoor movie (I know:  it’s not wildlife.  But it’s the only way to settle them down without going to bed yourself) and the grown-ups continued drinking and singing around the campfire.  We are so doing that again this year.

Now, of course there’s something to be said for venturing beyond the backyard–anyone have favorite camping spots?  If I get a few suggestions, that might be a future post.

I’m slacking off today and just telling you about good stuff that people besides me have been sharing lately.

The Albany Mommy Blog has a list of local county fairs for the summer.  She also reminded me to tell you about the free water ski shows in Scotia–here’s that schedule.

Albany Kid put together a list of local skateboarding parks.

Kristi from the TU Blog On the Edge reports that Time Warner customers get free tickets to the July 11th Valleycats game.

Phew!  Enjoy the weekend!

First, I had to laugh at this Onion article–how perfect that it actually says it’s from Niskayuna, NY!  Between this and that news brief they did on period movies, it’s as if they can peer into my Very Soul.

Here’s what’s going on this weekend:

All Weekend

• The Old Songs Festival is at the Altamont Fairgrounds.
• It’s Jazz Fest at SPAC.
• It’s St. Anthony’s Festa in Schenectady:  food, activities, & a rock wall.
• It’s the DEC’s Free Fishing Weekend. You can fish without a license on Saturday and Sunday at Grafton Lakes or Cherry Plain State Park.
• The Secret Garden continues at the Mac-Haydn Theatre.  This theatre is a bit of a drive away.

Evening of Friday, June 25th

• It’s Troy Night Out from 5-9 pm.
• Rob Jonas is playing outside the Pine Hills Branch Library at 5 pm.

Saturday, June 26th

• 10 am to noon Junior Naturalist program on Frogs and Salamanders at Dyken Pond for kids ages 2-10. $3/child or $6/family, pre-registration encouraged
• It’s Art on Lark from 10 am to 5 pm.
• There’s a Native Plant Sale at Thacher from 10 am to 3 pm.
• 10-11 am to noon, they’re kicking off a  Summer Book Club for Kids aged 10 to 12 at East Line Books in Clifton Park.  Actually, they’ve also got writing classes for kids from 2nd grade to teenagers, if you want to check them out.
• 11 am to noon Summer Book Club for Teenagers 13 to 15 at East Line Books in Clifton Park.  Actually, they’ve also got writing classes for kids from 2nd grade to teenagers, if you want to check them out.
• From 11 am to 3 pm, the Sand Lake Town Library is having a Family Fair.  A doll parade, a clown, & a bouncy bounce are among the activities.
• From 12-2 pm, there’s an Intro to Fishing for Families at Grafton Lakes State Park.
• 2:30 pm:  US Soccer vs. Ghana.  Wherever we happen to be on the road, we will be locating the nearest bar/BBQ place with a tv.  But if you’re staying local, Wolff’s Biergarten is turning it into a block party.
• You can tie dye at the Albany Art Room from 12-4 pm.  $5 per item to tie dye.  Bring your own or purchase items there.
• From 3-7 pm, Little Caesar’s in Guilderland is having a fundraiser for the Westmere Fire Department–kids can tour the firetruck, get goody bags, and more.
• At 6:30 pm, bring a dish to the Full Moon Solstice Hike and Potluck at Dyken Pond.
• Captain Squeeze & Zydeco Moshers are playing at Freedom Park in Scotia at 7 pm.
• They’ll be playing bluegrass in the barn at Mabee Farm from 7-9 pm.
• From 7-9 pm, take a Full Moon Hike at Moreau Lake State Park.
• It’s the Great American Backyard Campout.

Sunday, June 27th

• At 11 am, you can do a Scavenger Hunt at Moreau Lake State Park.
• The Niskayuna JCC is having a Family Park Summerfest from 12-4 pm.  Pool, bouncy bounce, and more free.
• It’s Family Fun Day at the Saratoga County Fairgrounds from 3-9 pm.  Free admission.
• The Music Company Orchestra will be playing at Freedom Park in Scotia at 7 pm.
• At 7 pm, the Clifton Park Community Chorus is playing at Clifton Commons Park.
• At 7 pm, Nona Hendryx will be singing in concert at Schenectady’s Central Park.

Okay, I’ve once again become carried away with the post when there’s a frightening pile of laundry to be folded.  Have I mentioned that we’re taking another long car trip that begins day after tomorrow?  So you’d think that I’d take it easy and just work ahead on the weekend post, right?  I mean, that’s what would be sensible.  Instead, here’s a post on getting wet.

We spent the afternoon at the pool, and I barely managed to drag the girls home.  We love the pool & we’re finally at the age where I think it’s going to be pretty easy.  Two big girls were coaching J in swimming, and they were so effective that my friend joked that I should be paying them.  Love that!

Meanwhile there were ample examples of the perils of pools:  harried moms balancing the shrieking-afraid-of-the-water-kid against the Mommy-come-in-and-hold-me-I-love-it kid, parents juggling the not-potty-trained-baby-pool-toddler with the way-too-big-and-dignified-for-the-baby-pool kid, the moms of tiny kids suffering the invasion of big, scary, splashy kids on toddler turf, the obnoxious kid lying on a chaise yelling for mom to bring a snack, the obnoxious mom yelling from a chaise for her kid to behave without offering any consequences when the kid ignores her, and, for me, endlessly watching exciting  “tricks” such as J hopping all the way across the pool (“Mommy?  Are you still watching?”) and M stepping off the diving board again and again.

But hey!  It’s sunshine!  It’s exercise!  It’s good, wholesome fun that leaves everyone exhausted and ready for an early bedtime!  We haven’t quite gotten into our summertime groove yet, but I am eager to give it a try.

Here’s a big list of all sorts of ways to get wet.  The few places that haven’t opened yet are opening this weekend.  Yay, summer!

Pools:

• Albany Pools are listed here.  One mom recommended Westland Hill [alas; closed this season--thanks to commenters for the update, and check them out for more suggestions] which is a zero entry pool (for non-connoisseurs of pools, this means you walk in gradually, like a beach–good for the teensy kids).
• Schenectady Pools are listed here.  We’ve been to Central Park, which is very large  zero entry pool that’s often cold & crowded but conveniently close to the playground, and Front Street, which has a separate kiddy pool–I like it better, but it’s a bit of a walk over to the playground.
• In Troy, Prospect Park has a pool.
• Victoria Pool and Peerless Pool, both in Saratoga, are very popular with moms.  Our moms’ group does an annual Peerless Pool trip.  Believe it or not, I’ve never made it to either of them.  Chalk this up to me being a cheap mom who hates to drive.  Follow the link for hours & fees.

Beaches:

• There’s a beach at Collins Park in Scotia.  It’s free for residents, but non-residents can use it for a nominal fee (I forget how much it was, but it isn’t much).
• Sand Lake has a town beach.
• Thompson’s Lake State Park (west of Albany)
• Cherry Plain State Park (east of Albany)
• Grafton Lakes State Park (northeast of Albany)
• Little Troy Park (Charlton)
• Moreau Lake State Park (north of Albany)–you might remember that I went here recently.
• Beaches at Lake George:  at least one mom found the Million Dollar Beach worth the trip and appreciated the snack hut and changing rooms.

Streams or creeks for wading:

• In Rexford, you can pull over north of Rte. 146 just east of Hetcheltown Road, by the railroad, and there are trails that will lead you to Alplaus Creek.
• The gardens at Union College have a creek.  Overlooking the gardens, the large building is a student center, and you can go in to buy food or drinks or use the bathrooms.
• Plotter Kill in Rotterdam has waterfalls and places for wading.
• Kids’ Creekside Village Playground (FANS) in Ballston Spa has a short walking path up to a creek that’s nice for wading.
• Christman Sanctuary in Duanesburg has a creek and waterfalls.
• Peebles Island in Waterford has a waterfall.
• Thacher Park has waterfalls along the trail.
• In Saratoga State Park, the Geyser Creek runs right through and past the playground.
• Normanskill is in the town of Bethlehem.

Splash Fountains:

• There are splash fountains at the Beekman Street Playground and at the East Side Recreational Field in Saratoga.  These links are profiles by Malta Mama.
• Prospect Park in Troy has a splash fountain.
• Peerless Pool is also splashy.
• The City of Albany has a lovely chart of playgrounds that have pools or wading pools/splash fountains, and here’s a list of pools and splash spots.   Moms have told me that the spray parks at Lincoln Park, Sheridan & Dove, Westland Hills and Rosemont are great.

Water Parks:

• One mom said that she gets season passes to Great Escape in Lake George through 6 Flags New England with a credit card discount.  There’s plenty for younger kids in the water park, plus fountains in various other play areas.
• Water Slide World is in Lake George, too.
• Zoom Flume is in East Durham if you’d rather go south.

Many of these are places that I have never visited, so I’d love reviews and/or additions to the list.

I thought that I’d tell you about two outdoor toys we’ve been enjoying lately.

M wanted the Max Liquidators as part of her birthday celebration.  I was skeptical, because they act like a syringe, drawing plenty of water and spraying it out quickly.  These seem like a perfect backyard pool toy, but we don’t have a pool.  I feared excessive lameness.  M felt so confident in the fun factor that she successfully lobbied to have each child get one ($5 each at Target or Wal-Mart) instead of a goody bag.  I do like the idea of one big possibly crappy toy instead of several tiny and absolutely crappy toys and a crappy candy in a bag.  I filled a kiddie pool so that there’d be a constant source of water.

Max Liquidators and a Flying Disk

Well, they were a rousing success.  Everyone at the party enjoyed them. In fact, we ended up having a spontaneous family water fight on Father’s Day as well.  This time the girls were refueling their ammo at a large bucket.  W pointed out that, in a way, it’s nice that the kids have to refuel constantly, because it keeps them contained around the water source.  Unlike many water guns that will last a while and end up getting carried into the house no matter how many times you’ve told them that it can’t go into the house.  Also:  it’s not a gun.  So if you’re resisting guns in your house, this can be a good compromise.  Sure, sure–it’s a weapon.  But it doesn’t look gun-like at all.  Oh, and  at first we thought that the Target ones were much easier to operate, but then we realized that the Wal-Mart ones had a little plastic sticky tab over the hole that had to be removed.  Of course I only figured this out as I was returning the “defective” Wal-Mart ones.  Not my most clever moment ever.  But in my defense, no one else in the household figured it out, either.

The Flying Disk was a gift that’s sort of like a Nerf version of a frisbee–softer and gentler in case it smacks you in the head.  It’s also so light that it’s a bit floaty, which makes it slow-moving and easier both to throw and catch.  They were both more successful with this than they’ve been with frisbees in the past.

For those of you who’ve been wondering how our weekend was, I’ll update you with my first-ever blog post chock full of triumph. 

Triumph #1:  The ice cream cake turned out pretty well. 

M's "Pool" Birthday Cake

It was touch and go for a bit when I lost track of time and whipped the cream too much.  This, coupled with my fear of over-coloring led to some gloppy, murky pool water.  Luckily I had extra cream, so I made another batch and just threw it on top.  Because, really, was anyone going to complain that there was too much whipped cream? 

Polly Pocket fits cozily into a gummy Lifesaver.

Of course, at the very end, the girls wanted to spread the whipped cream and place all of the little props themselves, which didn’t go along with My Cake Vision.  But I did an excellent job of restraining myself.  We had tremendously beautiful weather and the girls had a good time.  I was afraid that they’d get sick of slipping, sliding, and spraying each other with water, but they didn’t.  I could barely get them to stop long enough to eat cake. 

Triumph #2:  I ran the entire way through my 5k. 

It was quite warm, and I’d been very nervous because I’d hurt my calf a week earlier, so I’d only run once in the week prior to the race.  Plus, I’ve been stopping to walk at about 2.7 or 2.8 miles pretty consistently, except on my extra-awesome days.  So I ran very, very slowly, because I did not want to stop or walk at all.  I made it.  Yay, me!  I basked in my success for about five minutes, and then by the time I’d located the bananas I started feeling irritated with myself that I hadn’t run the whole thing faster.  No, I’m not going to tell you my time–it was slow.  And yes, I realize that I should just be pleased.  I’m trying. 

Triumph #3:  I have almost 500 fans–oops, I mean people who “like” capitaldistrictfun–on Facebook! 

I’m at 496, and this tends to go in little spurts. . . I’ll go weeks with very little change at all, or, even worse, I “lose” somebody, which is surprisingly depressing.  And it leads to all sorts of hand-wringing and teeth gnashing.  So I try not to look.  But then, when a couple of people join, of course, it’s contagious.  And I get to feel triumphant.  Woo, hoo!  Which reminds me, if you’re on Facebook and haven’t “liked” me yet, would you, please?  Then maybe your friends will see and they’ll find some fun, too.  And unicorns will prance through the Capital District, frolicking through rainbows with butterflies.  Well, not really, but it’s a lovely thought, right? 

Triumph #4:  I found a bathing suit! 

With a bit of photoshopping at the thighs, I think that I could almost look like a B-list 40s pin-up girl.  But you’ll have to take my word for it, because I will not be posting a photo.  I actually ran into a friend while I had a pile of suits over my arm, and she congratulated me on having the good sense to shop alone this time.  The winning suit was located in Macy’s at Colonie Center.